Youth learn about Civil Rights history in Meridian.

Historic Union Missionary Baptist church had a service today, and it was not a Sunday school lesson. Students traveled from Washington D.C to learn about the civil rights movement as well as history traced back here in Meridian when schools started to integrate.

“Today, I learned about Roscoe Jones and Bill O rile’s involvement in the Civil Rights Movement here in Meridian, and that was a really interesting experience, because we here about history, we read about history all of the time but to hear the first-hand experience is for people to be in history to be in this church where so much history happened it’s really an incredible experience, and it’s really impactful; especially for me and all of the other students, all my other peers who want to influence change in the future.”

Ricki Horne says information shared today, will always be remembered and she’s grateful for the way society is now.

“Today we’ve heard even more, we’ve heard Sadie Clark, and we hear Mrs. Rose right now sharing their stories of what it was like to be here in Meridian living every day, and what it was like to integrate high schools, and to be bullied, and to be frightened, and I think that lesson of understanding where we come from is too important so, that we can continue on today and not only appreciate where we are, and the fact that our students sit side by side together but also that they continue to fight for rights for everyone.”

Gary Johnson believes it’s important for youth to be educated on the civil rights movement and understand WHY things are the way they are now.

“The young people sometimes have a tendency to take things for granted; they need to know that some of the privileges and the rights that they have are just not accessible to them, that that was a great price paid for them to have access and some of the things they have access to."